Forrester’s recent research shows that, while Asia Pacific lags developed regions like North America and Europe in terms of smartphone penetration, the growth of smartphones will be highest in APAC between 2012 and 2017. As indicated in our recently published report, Forrester Research World Smartphone Adoption Forecast, 2012 To 2017 (Global), by end of 2013, Forrester estimates that smartphone penetration in North America will be 57%, followed by Europe with 42% and APAC with 21%. But in terms of the compound annual growth rate during the same period, smartphone penetration in APAC will grow by 20%, followed by Europe with 11% and North America with 10%.

The sharp increase in the number of smartphone users will greatly affect both the consumer and enterprise landscapes. Building on Forrester’s deep research on the Asia Pacific mobility opportunity, we will be holding a series of complimentary quarterly webinars to help our clients make sense of this rapidly changing landscape and position for success. Starting in March and covering the consumer and enterprise mobility markets, the webinars will bring together Forrester analysts from around the world to present a global and Asia Pacific perspective.

On March 5, 2013, I will present a mobile trends and summary webinar with my colleagues Thomas Husson and George Lawrie. This session will cover our key findings from this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, share our view of key 2013 mobile trends, and share best practices for building a successful business case for mobile initiatives. You can register for the webinar here.

It’s that time of the year: the pilgrimage to the Mobile Mecca, Mobile World Congress (MWC), in Barcelona. This is my 10th pilgrimage in a row and, needless to say, the event has changed tremendously over the past few years – from 3GSM in Cannes to the new venue in Barcelona this year. While CTIA is still very US-centric and CES is still a lot about TVs, MWC is really the only global mobile event with a strong presence of operators and handset manufacturers from all over the world. Every year the show becomes not only more global, but also more open to new categories of players — such as advertisers and developers — willing to make the most of mobile technologies, and more open to connected devices that go far beyond the traditional definition of a mobile phone. Markets are colliding and mobile innovation is at the center of these upheavals. MWC used to be a telecom show focusing mainly on mobile technologies, but the event is now bringing together people from every industry.

In the light of today’s first announcements, here is my take on how to put in perspective the announcements to be made at MWC 2013 in the coming days: